To fuck or to cook?

[Greedy,Greedy,Greedy]

Originally posted by greatwhitenorthchick
I am having two of my best friends over for thanksgiving dinner and I'm going to cook for them and I've promised that they will have real bird and I won't foist tofurkey on them. The question is, do I actually cook for them or do I pick up the pre-cooked turkey from the caterer the night before? I don't want leftovers. Do turkeys come in small enough sizes for just two people? Should I go with Cornish Hens or some other small bird for them? How does one cook a bird? Any books or websites I could go to for advice?

I am quite a good vegetarian cook, but have never cooked a bird before on my own. Suggestions are welcome. For Manhattan, my kitchen is reasonably big, so I can actually cook in it although I think I possess the only electric stove in the city, which is not particularly impressive.

Vegetarian cooking is usually pretty different from roasting meats, but it really isn't that tough - Wonk's directions will serve you well.

If you want to order out, check with a couple of the better hotels near you. I know there are a couple of hotels in Boston that will package up a bird and all the fixings, and then can be quite good. They also have pick-up Thanksgiving day, so you can get it hot and bring it home.

I like the smell, though, of a roasted bird and all the fixings on Thanksgiving. The smell is reason enough to cook yourself. I am mostly veggie, and will cringe at the smell of red meat, but I still like the roasting bird smell. Besides, they're dumb birds, they got what was coming to them.

Of course, you can also put one of your guests in charge of the bird.

[pony_trekker]

Originally posted by taxwonk
My mom can't cook to save her life, but here's my recipe:


5 lbs. Yukon Gold potatos, peeled and cut into roughly 1-inch cubes.

1/4 lb. butter

1/2 cup milk

kosher salt and pepper to taste.

The recipe is simplicity itself. Boil potatos until fork tender, drain. Add butter in one tbsp. peices and add milk. Mash with your preferred implement until the consistency is semi-smooth. Good mashed potatos need lumps. Add kosher salt and pepper to taste.

eta: RT, couldn't you have started with something a bit more complicated? I bet even Hank can make decent mashed potatos

Here's how to make them better:

No milk. Just use more butter. Or if you have to, use a few drops of heavy cream.

Liberal amounts of freshly ground pepper. Get it to where you think it's just enough and add 25% more.

[Greedy,Greedy,Greedy]

Originally posted by pony_trekker
Here's how to make them better:

No milk. Just use more butter. Or if you have to, use a few drops of heavy cream.

Liberal amounts of freshly ground pepper. Get it to where you think it's just enough and add 25% more.

Another alternative: Boiling them in a mix of milk and water gets you a creamier texture with more flavor. Boiling in water takes a lot of flavor out of your potato while just filling it up with water.

[ltl/fb]

Originally posted by Greedy,Greedy,Greedy
Another alternative: Boiling them in a mix of milk and water gets you a creamier texture with more flavor. Boiling in water takes a lot of flavor out of your potato while just filling it up with water.

The most recent Cook's Illustrated has quite the article on mashed potatoes. If I were under any illusions that anyone WANTED a mashed potato recipe, and that it wasn't just RT's way of saying "This board is for recipes!" I'd try to remember to bring it in and share some hints.

But I'm not, so I won't.

[Anne Elk]

Originally posted by ltl/fb
The most recent Cook's Illustrated has quite the article on mashed potatoes. If I were under any illusions that anyone WANTED a mashed potato recipe, and that it wasn't just RT's way of saying "This board is for recipes!" I'd try to remember to bring it in and share some hints.

But I'm not, so I won't.

Meanie.

[ltl/fb]

Originally posted by Anne Elk
Meanie.

If you are interested . . .

Off the top of my head:

The recipe developed was actually for smashed potatoes (skins on, intentionally very lumpy). They seemed to feel that sour cream is an essential ingredient in mashed potatoes, but that cream cheese worked better in the smashed version. They included chives (not spring onions, but chives). They boiled in water because boiling in milk/broth didn't add enough flavor to make the extra expense/waste worth it, but they reserved some of the cooking liquid to use to make the potatoes mushier. I'm pretty sure there was butter involved, and possibly also cream or milk.

There were also a couple variations.

They recommended using regular red-skinned potatoes. Baking potatoes were too mealy, new potatoes are too small and thus the peel-to-flesh ratio was too hight, and I can't remember what their problem was with Yukon Gold. Perhaps also too mealy.



In other news, either Cooking Light or Cook's Illustrated suggested brining turkey in cider (or a mixture of cider and water and salt, or something). Sounded interesting to me.

[Greedy,Greedy,Greedy]

Originally posted by Anne Elk
Meanie.

I'm glad someone here is nice.

Just for you, my eggnog recipe:


Put together in a bowl:

One quart whipping cream, whipped stiff.
One dozen egg whites, well beaten.

Cream together:

Two dozen egg yolks and about 1/3 cup sugar (more sugar is OK - sometime I'll do the 1/3 cup with a dozen egg yolks, complete the process, and then add more, with additional eggs, to taste).

Add a pint of rum, stirring slowly.

With your hands, gently massage the creamed mixture into the stiff mixture until the entire nog is a smooth color and texture. Serve with a mixture of ground cloves and nutmeg.

[AngryMulletMan]

Originally posted by taxwonk
My mom can't cook to save her life, but here's my recipe:


5 lbs. Yukon Gold potatos, peeled and cut into roughly 1-inch cubes.

1/4 lb. butter

1/2 cup milk

kosher salt and pepper to taste.

I start with the Yukon Gold potatoes and leave a stick of butter somewhat near the stove while I'm boiling so it's soft, mashes easier and doesn't draw the heat out of the potatoes. But instead of milk, I use half and half (slightly warmed) because I believe in really living it up on Thanksgiving.

As far as the bird is concerned, I follow the very simple directions in Barbara Kafka's book, On Roasting. She uses the high heat method. Your oven will smoke if it isn't cleaned it first so, if you don't have time to clean, disconnect the smoke detector. It's critical to allow the bird to come down to room temperature before roasting, but the high heat method is fairly quick and yields a juicy bird with somewhat crispy skin. And the gravy you'll make will be marvelous because the drippings are quite intensely flavored.

[pony_trekker]

1. Bring some good sirloins, ribeyes, NY strips or porterhouses to room temperature.

2. Coat with butter, celery salt, kosher salt and some cracked pepper.

3. Get a cast iron frying pan red hot.

4. Clear the house.

5. Disconnect the smoke detectors.

6. Slap that thing on the pan 2 minutes each side.

7. Wash down with a good red.

[Replaced_Texan]

Originally posted by pony_trekker
1. Bring some good sirloins, ribeyes, NY strips or porterhouses to room temperature.

2. Coat with butter, celery salt, kosher salt and some cracked pepper.

3. Get a cast iron frying pan red hot.

4. Clear the house.

5. Disconnect the smoke detectors.

6. Slap that thing on the pan 2 minutes each side.

7. Wash down with a good red.

This is a very good thread.

[Mmmm, Burger (C.J.)]

Originally posted by Greedy,Greedy,Greedy
Another alternative: Boiling them in a mix of milk and water gets you a creamier texture with more flavor. Boiling in water takes a lot of flavor out of your potato while just filling it up with water.

To solve that, use some of the water in which they were boiled, and cream/butter. More flavor, plus all that rich, creamery butter, and sufficiently smooth because you've used the water in lieu of the liquid in milk. Skip the milk

[Greedy,Greedy,Greedy]

Originally posted by Mmmm, Burger (C.J.)
To solve that, use some of the water in which they were boiled, and cream/butter. More flavor, plus all that rich, creamery butter, and sufficiently smooth because you've used the water in lieu of the liquid in milk. Skip the milk

Or use the milk/water combination and add some of the milk/water to them, with lots of butter, too, and some cream if you like cream. (By the way, the earlier sour cream suggestion works pretty well, too).

Because too much of a good thing is absolutely wonderful.

[Mmmm, Burger (C.J.)]

Originally posted by pony_trekker

3. Get a cast iron frying pan red hot.

4. Clear the house.

5. Disconnect the smoke detectors.

6. Slap that thing on the pan 2 minutes each side.
.

I'm a homeowner with a grill. If you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up.

[tmdiva]

You people are mashed potato pikers. No water in mashed potatoes, ever. Half and half is optimal, and no milk with a fat content lower than 2%, in any case. A stick of butter for every couple of pounds of potatoes. This is what the Cooks' Illustrated folks say, and I agree that it makes the best mashed potatoes ever. The key is to boil the potatoes with skins on, so they don't absorb as much water (which you should still salt heavily, then use to kill weeds in your driveway cracks). And use russets, because they have the highest starch content. The starch absorbs liquid and fat. If you've kept it from absorbing the cooking liquid, it will absorb all the butter and half and half you throw at it. Use room-temperature butter and warm the half and half. Peel the hot potatoes, then use a ricer or a masher, depending on how smooth you like them.

tm

[pony_trekker]

Originally posted by Mmmm, Burger (C.J.)
I'm a homeowner with a grill. If you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up.

I have a big ass grill. They come out much better in the pan and it takes too long to get the pan hot outside.